Grass collectors which are pulled behind riding mowers and lawn tractors are becoming increasingly popular. One type of grass collector is a single or dual grass bagger which is supported on a frame behind the riding mower or tractor. The bagger frame is sometimes supported above the surface of the ground by a plurality of wheels. A grass chute extending from the mower housing is interconnected to the bagger so as to provide a path for the flow of the grass clippings from the mower to the grass bagger. With some lawn and garden tractors having a two- or three-blade mower deck, an auxiliary engine driven blower or a mower belt driven blower is required in order to provide sufficient force to transport the grass clippings into the bagger.
Smaller mowers or tractors having one- or two-blade mower decks utilize "high lift" blades so that sufficient force is provided by the design of the blade itself and an auxiliary blower is not required. However, many of the grass collectors which rely upon high lift blades have metal, plastic or cloth sides which do not allow the air to move freely through the grass collector. As a result, there is pressure buildup within the grass collector which prevents the free flow of air needed to transport the grass into the bagger, so that a ventilation screen must often be provided.
Currently available vacuum grass collectors which have an auxiliary engine are rather expensive. Also, the grass collectors and baggers are typically capable of only being used for bagging purposes and cannot also be used as a multi-purpose cart. If a cart is provided in conjunction with the grass collector, the collector is typically mounted on a cart having a non-rigid hitch which is difficult to back up and which is easily tipped on hills when full. Another problem is that conventional grass collectors and baggers are often too tall to allow mowing in the proximity of low tree branches.
In addition, many grass collectors require a rather complicated mounting hitch arrangement to enable attachment to the riding mower or garden tractor.
Furthermore, many of the baggers commercially available are difficult to unload. They often do not provide for sufficient pivoting of the grass collector for easy dumping, so that the operator must reach into the grass collector to remove the grass clippings or leaves therewithin.
Another problem with the single or dual bag collectors is that they must be emptied quite frequently, as they are not of sufficient size.
The present invention solves these and many other problems associated with currently available grass collectors.